Retrospective of interdisciplinary research on robot services (1954–2023): From parasitism to symbiosis

Social distancing and low-touch services have been fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a paradoxical dilemma for service providers to balance high-quality service and low-touch demand. The introduction of robot services has emerged as a possible solution, yet its full potential in fostering a user-friendly modern society remains underexplored. Our goal is to address this gap via a comprehensive analysis of 16,255 interdisciplinary articles published between 1954 and 2023, elucidating the intellectual, social, and conceptual frameworks underpinning robot service research. Using a parasitical evolutionary lens, which incorporates various stages from low-level parasitism to symbiosis, we investigated the dynamic relationship between robot services and related technologies. Furthermore, we pinpointed six primary application areas for robot services, and charted their historical development, current status, and evolving issues. Additionally, we analysed robot service applications in contemporary society, offering both cross-domain and domain-specific insights. Theoretically, our research combines the integrated interdisciplinary narrative with the evolutionary technological parasitism perspectives on deconstructing robot services research. This contributes to bridging the gap between theory and practice, and expanding the boundaries of applying technology parasitism theory in answering real-world questions. Empirically, this study provides valuable insights for shaping management and innovation policies in this field. Specifically, the opportunities, threats, and future research agendas highlighted in this study can aid the work of policymakers, strategists, and technology implementation teams.